The National Student Clearinghouse® Research Center™regularly publishes research that supports education, workforce, and learner success. Our research offers objective data and insights about student enrollment, mobility, completion, and other important student outcomes that are visible only through the Clearinghouse data. Our nationwide network of nearly 3,600 postsecondary institutions provides up-to-date student-level data that represents 97 percent of the postsecondary enrollment today. Our publications are to benefit and better inform the education community, policymakers, business leaders, and other community leaders.
COVID-19
Stay Informed with the Latest Enrollment Information
National Student Clearinghouse Research Center’s Regular Updates on Higher Education Enrollment
November 18, 2021
Also, see Spring 2022 Enrollment
COVID-19
Transfer, Mobility, and Progress
National Student Clearinghouse Research Center’s Update on Transfer Students
May 3, 2022
Publication Series
Persistence & Retention
This report series helps institutions understand first-year college persistence and retention patterns and identify disparities between different students, institutions, or states in this important early success indicator.
Last Published June 28, 2022
75%
First-year persistence rate for fall 2020 starters, up 1.1 percentage points over the previous cohort
Undergraduate Degree Earners
Insights into undergraduate credential earners in the 2020-21 academic year by demographic and educational profiles.
Last Published June 22, 2022
1.1%
Growth in college graduates from a year ago
Current Term Enrollment Estimates
Latest enrollment estimates for the current term nationally and by state, reported on by institution types, student groups, and major fields.
Last Published May 26, 2022
662,000
Decline in undergraduate enrollment from a year ago
Some College, No Credential
This report series seeks to understand the educational trajectories of millions of U.S. adults who left postsecondary education without receiving a postsecondary credential and are no longer enrolled.
Last Published May 10, 2022
39M
Some College, No Credential population as of July 2020
Completing College
Provides a comprehensive overview of postsecondary completion trends nationally and by state. For all students who enter postsecondary education for the first time each year, it examines the diverse pathways the student traversed toward completion, as well as a degree or certificate completion rate within six and eight years of enrolling.
Last Published February 3, 2022
62.2%
The national 6-year college completion rate, counting all students at all institutions
High School Benchmarks
The loss of immediate college enrollment in fall 2020, as previously reported in March, did not lead to an expected upswing in gap year enrollment in fall 2021.
Last Published December 1, 2021
2%
Gap year college enrollment rate for the class of 2020, no notable change from pre-pandemic years
Tracking Transfer
Latest six-year baccalaureate degree completion rate for transfer students from two- to four-year institutions is reported for the 2014 cohort of first-time degree-seeking students, analyzed by student SES and institutional characteristics.
Last Published September 23, 2021
15%
Community college beginners earning a BA in six years, an increase of 1 percentage point over last year
Yearly Success & Progress Rates
Year-by-year rates of persistence, transfer, completion, and stop-out can help states and institutions better identify effective intervention points to increase student success.
Last Published February 9, 2021
30%
Part-time beginning students no longer enrolled anywhere two years later, up 5 percentage points from a year ago
Upcoming Publications
JULY 2022
PDP Insights
JULY 2022
Yearly Success & Progress
SUMMER 2022
COVID-19 Transfer, Mobility, and Progress Final Report Summer 2022
Current Initiatives
Postsecondary Data Partnership
The Postsecondary Data Partnership is a nationwide initiative to help colleges and universities more efficiently gain a fuller picture of student progress and outcomes, meet various reporting requirements, and focus more of their resources on using data to help students.
Have suggestions for new analyses related to our publications?
Share your ideas here.
Subscribe to get the latest from the Research Center